Soul To Squeeze
by Nicoley117-TheBlueMartini
Summary: I used to love spending time with her, but ever since the accident……I shook my head, clearing out the mental images...
1. A World Gone Ebony

**Disclaimer: **Don't Own it!

**A/N: **Well Miss Leia and I(Nicoley) are back! WOOHOO! Ok for those of you who don't know us please continue reading this paragraph! Those of you who do know us please skip to the next paragraph! OK! Hello! I am Nicoley and I post my friend's (whom we call Miss Leia) stories for her. She writes this-Not me! Now don't worry-she sees your reviews (so please review! 'Cause she loves 'em!)

Well we are back and I know you're all excited! Yeah we should totally have a party that includes cake! YIPPEE! Ok so where did this title come from you may ask-Well we had no idea what to call this fic so we decided to look up song titles! Lately we've been having this Red Hot Chili Peppers obsession-So 'Soul to Squeeze' is one of their songs that we decided to use! (We don't own that either by the way) NOW! Onto the story!

**Soul To Squeeze**

_Chapter 1: A World Gone Ebony_

The door to the chemistry room slowly opens as 42 eyes are drawn to it. They stare at me, burning through me, uncovering every secret I hold. I clutched my books tighter to my chest, as if they were going to protect me. I walked over to Mr. Thompson's desk on shaky legs, handing him a small yellow slip.

"Sorry I'm late," I mumbled as he took the paper.

"That's the third time this week, Vortex," he said sharply, his own eyes burning into me, into my soul, just like the rest of them. "What's your excuse this time?" I brushed my now dark hair out of my eyes.

"Overslept," I responded quietly. Mr. Thompson gave me a doubtful stare.

"Sit down," he sighed. I nodded and made my way over to my desk, placing my books down and sitting down gingerly. "Now, as I was saying earlier," Mr. Thompson started, turning back towards the board. I slouched in my seat and immediately drowned him out. Why man even created a thing as insipid as school is beyond me. I sighed, putting my elbow on my desk and my palm in my hand, staring at the blank wall in front of me. Unconsciously, I moved my thumbnail into my mouth and softly chewed on it. Biting my nails. It was a horrible habit I could never seem to break.

"And the answer is what, Miss Vortex?"

"Huh, what?" I asked, snapping out of my trance.

"Maybe if you started paying attention, you'd know where we were. Can anyone else tell me the answer to my question? Ah! Yes! Mr. Neutron, enlighten us!"

"Well, you see," Jimmy answered, gloating and victory oozing in his voice, "according to the periodic table…." I rolled my eyes and sighed, drowning out the rest of what Jimmy was saying. I knew everything I needed to know about the periodic table. It's not like I was ever gonna see it again in my life anyway.

"Thank you Mr. Neutron!" Mr. Thompson exclaimed. "It's good to know SOMEBODY pays attention in my class." I rolled my eyes and shook my head.

"Thank you Mr. Thompson. I…." Jimmy was cut off by ringing of the bell. I sighed in relief. This wasn't the first time I had been totally humiliated in Mr. Thompson's class. I sighed as I made my way to my locker, where Libby was waiting for me.

"Hey girl! What's up?" she asked happily, too happily.

"Nothing," I mumbled, twisting my combination into my lock.

"Girl don't even start that. What'd Thompson do to you this time?"

"Same thing he always does," I replied, dumping my books into my locker and grabbing my binder for math. "God, my locker's a mess."

"Hey, what are you doin tonight?" Libby asked, ignoring the last thing I said.

"I'm busy," I said flatly, closing my locker door.

"Doing what? Cin, you really gotta get out more."

"I'm fine," I said through clenched teeth. "I gotta go I'm gonna be late."

"Well, if you change your mind, call me!" Libby called after me. I put my hand in the air, signaling I had heard her, although I knew she knew I wasn't going to change my mind. I used to love spending time with her, but ever since the accident…….I shook my head, clearing out the mental images, and unconsciously pulled the sleeves of my black sweatshirt further down my arms. Let's just say that now I prefer to stay home.

**A/N:** -in a sing songy voice**- **Review! REVIEW! ReViEw!!!!


	2. An Invitation to a Feast of Souls

**Disclaimer: **If I did own it, don't you think I'd be making a fabulous new episode of Jimmy Neutron instead of sitting here writing a story that I make no money off of? Hope you got the point like a pencil tip.

**A/N: **_(Nicoley) _A new chapter! Can I get a WOOHOO? –crickets- Ah oh well, I bet you're Woohoo-ing on the inside…Well we hope you're all feeling just fabulous…because you know everything's just gotta be all good with our dear reviewers! And I'm rambling for no reason…PICKLES! Oh so random right there…but I don't know when I think rambling I think pickles….I can't explain how my mind works people-sorry if I scare you. ANYWAY! Thank you to everyone who reviewed! We loved them so keep them coming : ) Onto the chappie!

**Soul To Squeeze**

_Chapter 2: An Invitation to a Feast of Souls_

The last bell of the day finally pierced the silent halls of Retroville High.

"Thank _God_!" I groaned, slamming my binder shut. Why did school have to be nothing but total hell for me? I picked up my books and walked out the door, into the hall. Have you ever had that feeling that everyone was staring at you, even if, in reality, they weren't? I walked down the hall to my locker, feeling the sting of a thousand eyes burning into me.

"CINDY!" a voice, too preppy for it's own good, called to me from down the hall. I looked straight ahead, pretending not to notice it. "CIN! WAIT UP!" I kept walking until I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned to see a panting Betty Quinlin standing next to me. "D-didn't you he-hear me cuh-calling you?"

"No," I lied. "What do you want?"

"I wanted to invite you to my Halloween party on Friday!" she said, thrusting a piece of paper at me. I took it cautiously.

"Uh…thanks," I said, slightly disgusted and confused at the same time.

"Hope you can make it!" Betty said, smiling and tucking a loose strand of long, brown hair behind her ears.

"Yeh," I replied, unenthusiastically.

"Well, bye. See ya!" I gave her a small wave with my hand and walked in the other direction towards my locker. When I reached it, I found Libby waiting for me.

"Take this," I said, shoving Betty's invitation into her hand.

"Why, aren't you going?" asked Libby, confused.

"No," I said, slightly annoyed, digging through my locker.

"Why not?" I slammed my locker door shut and faced Libby.

"Because," I said, trying to keep my voice calm, "I have better things to do than go to some lame-ass high school party. Especially one hosted by Miss I'm-So-Beautiful-And-Perfect." I slung my book bag over my right shoulder and started walking towards the door.

"But Cindy!" Libby called, jogging to catch up to me. "This is the biggest party of the year!"

"Another reason to not go," I responded.

"Cin! You never do anything anymore! I feel like I never see you anymore!"

"Point?" I asked, wishing more than anything she would leave me alone. Libby sighed with defeat.

"Whatever Cindy, you wanna stay at home doing…..whatever it is you do, be my guest. I won't try and stop you," she said, tears lining her eyes.

"Good," I replied.

"You know," Libby said suddenly, "Jimmy's gonna be there." I stopped for a second and turned to face her.

"Seriously?" I asked hopefully. Libby nodded. I shook my head. "Oh, what makes you think I'd wanna see him more than I have to?"

"I don't know. Maybe because you're helplessly in love with him." I rolled my eyes and turned back towards the bus. "Well, I've gotta go to band now!" Libby called to me. I waved my hand in the air to signal I had heard her. "Bye Cin," she added quietly, and turned towards the band room.

**A/N: **Alright, so, since we make you happy by posting this story-how bout returning the favor and making us happy?!?! A.K.A-**REVIEW!**


	3. Blame Stephen King

**Disclaimer:**Don't own Jimmy Neutron or Vanessa Carlton's "Thousand Miles".

**A/N: **Hello All! Alright we've got to let you know-this chapter was like close to being rated M- so it's sort of M-ish but then like not! (:: Not making sense:: ) Anyway we're just giving you a warning. And as always, big thanks to the lovely reviewers!

**Soul To Squeeze**

_Chapter 3: Blame Stephen King_

**-5 Years Ago-**

"_Makin' my way downtown_

_Walkin fast, faces pass and I'm homebound_

_Starin blankly ahead just makin my way_

_Makin my way through the crowd_

'_Cause I need you, and I miss you_

_And now I wonder_

_If I could fall into the sky_

_Do you think time would pass me by?_

'_Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles_

_If I could……If I could……UGH!"  
_

I slammed the keys on my piano and groaned. Why can't I ever get that line right? I sighed and rolled my eyes, closing the top of the piano.

"I thought it sounded good, sweetie," a voice said to me from outside the door of the piano room.

"Thanks Gramma," I said quietly, offering a weak smile. "But I think I'm just gonna go up to my room now and….do my homework."

"Alright Cin, I'm gonna hit the road here. You gonna be OK by yourself until your mother gets home?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Thanks," I responded, slowly climbing the stairs to my room. "Bye Gramma."

"Bye hon."

I finished climbing the stairs until I reached my room. I had always hated homework. I sighed and sat down on my bed, fishing my books out of my book bag and setting them down in front of me. I glanced at the clock: 5:30, she should be home any minute. I stared back at my books, pencil in hand, eyes unfocused, attention span slowly fading……..

I must have dozed off or something, because when I looked at my clock again it read 7:30. I gasped and stood up. It was almost dinnertime. Hopefully Mom wasn't too worried about me. I walked over to my door and slowly opened it.

"Mom?" No answer. I opened my door all the way and started walking downstairs. "Mom?" I repeated loudly. Still no answer. I felt my heartbeat speed up. I took a deep breath to calm myself down. 'Don't worry,' I told myself, 'she….probably just got stuck in traffic. Yeah, that's it, traffic has been really bad these past couple of days. Just go watch TV or something…OR FINISH YOUR HOMEWORK! You know you have so much homework to finish. No, TV would be nice.' I made my way over to the couch, picked up the remote, and clicked on the TV. Whatever was on, I wasn't paying attention. I was more focused on the door opening and my mother talking through it. After a couple minutes I glanced at the clock. 8:00. Where could she be? I slowly stood up and made my way over to the phone, dialing her cell number with shaky fingers. Ring, ring, ring.

"Hullo?" a husky voice asked….a man's voice.

"H-hi," I stuttered. I took another deep breath. My heart was slamming painfully against my rib cage. "I-is this Suh-Sasha V-Vortex's phone?"

"Yes," the man replied shortly.

"Oh," I took another deep breath. Maybe she had some date tonight she didn't tell me about. "This is Cindy, her daughter. Are you two like on a date or something?"

The man chuckled lightly. "You could say that," he replied.

"Oh, she's probably just in the bathroom or something," I said more calmly.

"No, not really," the man responded.

"Ok, then where is she?"

The man chuckled lightly again and I felt my heart speed up again.

"She's dead, sweetheart." I gasped and dropped the phone. Even from where I was standing I could hear the man laughing. "Dead, sweetheart!" he repeated. I slowly picked up the phone again, my breathing fast and painful, my heart pounding in my chest, tears streaming down my face. "I have all of her stuff, I know where you live, and I swear on my life if you tell anybody about this, I'll come to your house and skin you alive, you hear me?"

"Y-yuh-yes," I sobbed. I could almost FEEL the man grin on the other line.

"Good," he purred. "And just to make sure we have an agreement, come to your front door."

"Nuh-no," I squeaked. I couldn't even if I wanted to, my feet were rooted to the spot.

"Walk over to the door, bitch, or I swear to God…."

"OK!" I shrieked. "I'm coming." I slowly walked over to the door, clutching the phone in my hand so tightly my knuckles were turning white. I raised my trembling hand to the doorknob and turned it, opening the door just a crack. What I saw on the porch made my blood run cold. I screamed and dropped the phone, causing it to crack and shatter. My mother's head was sitting on my front porch, her mouth wide open in a silent scream, her eyes wide and glazed over with shock.

"THOUGHT YOU'D LIKE TO SEE MOMMY ONE LAST TIME, SWEETHEART!" The man called from his car at the end of my driveway. I swayed on my feet, groping for the edge of the doorframe to steady me. The cold November air whipped my hair and pierced my skin. The color was slowly draining from every thing, sounds slowly fading. My breathing was quick, harsh, painful. My sweaty hands slipped on the doorframe. Everything seemed to go in slow motion as I fell to the floor, and the whole world went black.

**A/N: **Alright, so we hope it wasn't too violent and...freaky for you! And you may be wondering about the chapter title-Well we'll just say that Miss Leia has been reading too much of her favorite author-Stephen King-lately. Hopefully, you know what we're talking about…

As always-please review!


	4. A Proposition Left Unanswered

**Disclaimer: **Don't own it!

**A/N: **::begins beating purple straws on head:: Well isn't that an interesting way to introduce a chapter? WAHA! Thanks to all the reviewers! You're all very spiffy! Now….Introducing….CHAPTER FOUR!

**Soul To Squeeze**

_Chapter 4: A Proposition Left Unanswered_

I woke with a start, my head springing up from my pillow. My heart was thudding painfully against my rib cage, and my breath felt cold and heavy in my dry throat. I closed my eyes and took a couple deep breaths before collapsing back on my pillow. Ever since that night, that dream has haunted me in my sleep. My sense of fear was quickly replaced by sadness. I felt tears swell in my tired eyes and spill slowly down my cheeks. I sniffed and wiped the tears off my cheeks. I jumped slightly as I heard a gentle knock at my door.

"Cindy? Are you alright, dear?" the familiar voice of my grandma asked.

"Yeah, Grammy," I replied as calmly as I could. "I'm fine."

"I heard you screaming," she said.

"Just a bad dream," I responded. "I'm OK, I promise." She slowly walked over to me, placing a gentle hand on my forehead.

"I miss her too, sweetheart," she whispered, as if reading my mind. I closed my eyes tightly, begging myself not to cry.

"Yeah," I whispered, choking slightly on my words, "a lot." She kissed my forehead lightly.

"Go back to sleep, hun. I'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight Grammy," I replied, settling back into my pillow.

"Goodnight sweetheart."

My alarm clock rang at 6:00 the next morning. Thursdays were always a pain. I groaned and rolled over on my back, rubbing my eyes.

"Cindy, sweetie, you awake?" My grandma called from downstairs.

"Yeah, Grammy," I called back groggily. I pushed the button to shut my alarm clock off, rolled out of bed, and shuffled to the shower. I stepped into the shower and turned it on, letting the searing hot water pour onto my body and drip off my fingertips. I closed my eyes and sighed. After washing my hair and body, I stepped out of the shower and got dressed. I looked at myself in the mirror and sighed, pulling my dark hair back into a ponytail.

"God, I'm so ugly," I muttered under my breath, pulling my shirt over my head and my pants up.

"Cindy! The bus is here!" I rolled my eyes and sighed. Joy! More school.

"Coming Grammy!" I walked through my room, shouldering my book bag, and running downstairs. I bolted out the door so fast, I barely heard my grandma call for me to have a nice day. Yeah, like I EVER have a nice day at school! I climbed onto the bus and slumped into my usual seat, staring out the window. I was so out of it; I didn't even realize the bus was moving until we reached the front door of Retroville High. I stood up with the rest of the high schoolers and made my way off the bus. As soon as I walked through the door, I was greeted by the hustle and bustle of kids rushing to their classes. I sulked down the hallway to my locker, carelessly twisting in my combination and opening the door.

"Cindy!" I heard a voice call behind me. I turned around to see the face of Nick Dean behind me. He smiled. "Glad I caught you."

"What do you want?" I asked, closing my locker door.

"I just wanted to ask you, are you going to Betty's party tomorrow?"

"Probably not," I muttered, glancing at the clock.

"Oh, that's too bad. I was going to ask you to come with me." My breath caught in my throat. I had liked Nick for as long as I could remember, and he was actually asking me out!…Well, sort of. 'He has to be faking it,' I thought to myself.

"I don't know Nick," I sighed. "You're a great guy, it's just…."

"Cin! Come on! You don't get out anymore! All I ask for is just one night! Please?" The pleading look in his eyes made me melt inside. I sighed again.

"I'll think about it," I replied. "I've gotta get to class."

"OK, I'll be waiting for that answer." As he walked away, I walked in the direction of my first period class. I couldn't help but hide the smile forming on my face.

**A/N:** Oh you know what we want (Hint Hint-REVIEWS!)….AND WE WANT THEM NOW::starts imitating that girl from Wily Wonka::


	5. Unaware of the Fortune Cookie

**Disclaimer:** I simply do not own it!

**A/N:** Just know that we love you all! And because we love you all so much we thought we'd give you a new chapter! Thanks for the reviews!

**Soul To Squeeze**

_Chapter 5: Unaware of the Fortune Cookie_

I walked into my last period class feeling a lot better than I had this morning. Things just seemed to be going my way today….for once in my miserable life. I sat down in my seat and sighed a happy sigh.

"What got you so happy, Vortex?" a voice asked in a mock-teasing tone.

"Well, if you must know, Neutron, Nick Dean just asked me to Betty Quinlin's party tomorrow," I replied smugly. Jimmy looked at me, shook his head, and laughed lightly. "What's so funny?" I asked, smiling.

"It's so great to see you happy again," Jimmy replied. "You're acting like….well, like you again."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Nothing," Jimmy sighed. I narrowed my eyes and he sighed again. "It's just, you've kinda changed since middle school is all," Jimmy said. I looked down at the floor as the smile faded from my face.

"I know," I responded quietly. He gently put a hand on my shoulder.

"You really miss her, don't you?" I shrugged his hand off and glared at him.

"I don't wanna talk about it," I said sternly.

"Oh, ok," he said quietly, a look of hurt spreading across his face. I sighed and put my arm around his shoulders.

"I'm sorry Jimmy," I whispered. "I didn't mean to snap at you. It's just, people don't think I can survive on my own, and I'm just sick of everyone's pity."

"I know," he responded. I gave a small sigh and smiled.

"I'm glad you're one of my best friends, Jimmy," I said, then shook my head. "Please don't ask me where that came from." Jimmy looked at me and laughed.

"CINDY! JIMMY!" a voice called, causing us both to jump. "If you two are done talking, maybe you can start paying attention, seeing as class started 10 minutes ago!"

"Sorry Mr. Davis," we both said in unison, as if we had practiced it. I guess, in theory, we have. Things like this happened to us about 4 times a week. Mr. Davis sighed and turned back to the board. I looked back over at Jimmy, and we both fought to suppress a fit of giggles.

The bell finally rang, signaling the end of last period. Jimmy and I walked out of class together.

"So, what do you think, should I go to this party or not?" I asked Jimmy.

"Definitely," he responded. "You never get out anymore, Cin. I think this would be good for you." I looked at him as if debating his answer.

"Alright," I finally answered. "Now I have to go find Nick and tell him yes. Catch you later?"

"Always," Jimmy replied.

"OK," I said excitedly. I sighed happily and smiled. "This is so amazing, things are _finally_ going my way!" Jimmy smiled.

"That's good," he replied. "Now, go get your man." I laughed and walked towards Nick's locker to tell him my good news. I felt Jimmy's eyes following me down the hall. Then he mumbled something almost inaudible that sounded like "Your man…..who has no idea how lucky he is."

**A/N: **We'd love you even more if you reviewed! TEEHEE!


	6. Confusion Leads to Romance

**Disclaimer: **Nope-still don't own it!

**A/N: **Hello Starshine! The Earth says hello! ….Meh ok so not really…whatever! You know what I have been thinking…What if you were eating a piece of toast and then suddenly if seemed as if you were eating cardboard! I would find that absolutely horrible…Ok on to more relevant subjects…Thank you all for the fantabulous reviews and we hope you'll enjoy this chapter….well maybe you won't considering what happens….MWAHAHA!

**Soul to Squeeze**

_Chapter 6: Confusion Leads to Romance _

Betty's party came faster than I expected. Before I knew it, it was 7:00 Friday night, and I was dressed and waiting for Nick to pick me up. I smiled at the thought. Cindy and Nick…Nick and Cindy…it had a nice ring to it. After what seemed like years, the doorbell rang. I sprang up from the couch to answer it. Sure enough, Nick was standing outside.

"Hey Cin," he said, smiling.

"Hi Nick," I replied, smiling back.

"Well, I guess we'd better get going." He held out his hand and I took it, walking down my front steps and down the sidewalk towards Betty's house.

I have to admit, it's pretty awkward showing up at a girl's party with her ex-boyfriend, but Nick and I managed to pull it off. He didn't even seem to notice that Betty was there. At least, that's what I thought.

"Hey Cin," he called over to me about an hour into the party. "Come dance with me!"

"Alright," I called back. "Do you guys care?" Jimmy and Libby, who I had been talking to most of the time I'd been there, shook their heads.

"Go for it," Libby said, practically shoving me in Nick's direction. I walked over to Nick and we started dancing. After a couple songs, the music slowed down. Nick wrapped his arms around my waist and we started swaying to the rhythm of the song. I was so lost in the moment, I didn't even realize we kept moving closer towards Betty. I felt Nick's hands travel further down my back and touch my butt. I gasped and pulled away from him a little.

"Nick, what are you doing?"

"Oh, sorry Cin," he responded. "Accident." I rolled my eyes and started dancing again. After a few seconds, he pulled me closer to him and forced his lips on mine aggressively. I pushed his chest and pulled away from him, shocked.

"Nick, what the hell are you doing?"

"Come on, Cin. Don't act like you don't want me," he replied, smirking. I looked up into his eyes, but they weren't looking at me. They were focused on something behind me. I turned around to see Betty, a look of surprise on her face, staring back at Nick. I turned back to him.

"You're sick, you know that?" I said, turning around and stomping up the stairs. I ran down the hall into an empty bedroom and slammed the door. I collapsed on the bed as tears flooded into my eyes and spilled down the sides of my cheeks onto the bed.

"I can't believe him!" I screamed, slamming my hands on the bed. "He's just so…UGH!" I grabbed a pillow and threw it at the wall. My aim isn't very good. It hit the dresser, knocking off a bottle of perfume. I got up to put it back on, but stopped. Sitting on the dresser was a small picture frame. Inside the frame was a picture of two teens, their arms around each other. They were both laughing in the picture, like the only thing they needed in the world was each other. Written above it in a familiar scribble of letters was "Betty, I will love you forever." This was Betty's room, and the two kids must have been her and Nick. I had a sudden urge to grab the frame and throw it at the wall, but I held back. I set the perfume bottle back on the dresser.

"Cindy?" a voice called from the door.

"What do you want?" I asked, not turning around.

"Look, Cin, I'm……What are you looking at?"

"A picture. Apparently your ex couldn't get rid of it." I turned and faced Nick in the doorway. "Do you want to tell me what the hell is going on?"

"What are you talking about?" Nick asked, closing the door and walking towards me.

"Like, why you asked me to the party if you're not over Betty?"

"Cin, that's not true. We broke up forever ago. I'm totally over her."

"Oh, bullshit," I seethed. "Are you…..are you just using me to make her jealous?"

"Cindy, why would I do that?" Nick asked, looking deeply into my eyes. "I really like you, you're a really sweet girl. I would never do something like that, I swear." I looked away from him. "Look, I'm sorry about what I did. It was wrong, and maybe I was moving too fast."

"What was your first clue?" I mumbled. He lifted my chin up with his finger.

"The truth is, I really do like you. And I was hoping, if you're not totally pissed at me, you'd wanna be my girlfriend?"

"A-are you serious?" I asked, surprised. He leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on my lips.

"Very," he replied. I bit my lip and smiled.

"Yes," I breathed, "I would love to be your girlfriend."

**A/N**: As always, please review! And Happy Holidays! (probably won't update again till the New Year)


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